One of the last things you'd expect at the United Synagogue's Willesden Cemetery, or any cemetery for that matter, is a Maori war dance.

But you would have seen a haka performed in its prayer hall on Monday by the London Maori Club. It was part of an event to honour the memory of Sir Julius Vogel, the first practising Jewish Prime Minister of New Zealand, who is buried there.

Sir Julius, who became PM in 1876 and died in 1899, was a " profound political thinker and helped to transform New Zealand into a place where economic growth and prosperity became possible," said Sir Lockwood Smith, the country's High Commissioner, who attended the ceremony.

The US is keen to raise awareness of the heritage of the cemetery, which contains the graves of many Jewish VIPs.